Listen Now: 
The Wairoa Film Festival audience has voted actor turned director Jennifer Ward-Lealand’s short film on the methamphetamine epidemic the best of the festival.
Disrupt looks at the devastating effects of P on a whānau when a grandmother is the only person who refuses to give up on her drug-addicted grandson.
The 13-minute film was written by journalist Aroha Awarau based on what he had seen on the job and in his own whānau, and it was produced by Māori Television news presenter Peata Melbourne.
The cast includes Kararaina Rangihau, Joe Dekkers-Reihana, Ella Edward, Miriama McDowell, and Piripi Taylor.
Ward-Lealand says winning the Tinirau Award shows the film’s message resonated with the audience.
As well as its Wairoa screening, Disrupt was also shown this weekend at the Beverly Hills International Film Festival in Los Angeles.
It’s scheduled to screen at the Māoriland Film Festival in Otaki on June 30.
RELATED NEWS
